vanillajello | Overland Park, KS, Tuesday FT

It was the first day of the rest of their lives.

Okay, so maybe that a little overly dramatic, but Kate was pretty much feeling like that. It was still morning, but Tara and Max had more or less packed all their stuff in the truck already. Max was just fetching the last few of the bags now.

They were all gathered in the front yard: Charmaine with Wheels in her arms, Neil, Bod, Kate, and Marshall. And Tara, of course, fussing with some of her bags before the goodbyes.

Kate looked like she was going to cry, but then she'd been looking like that all morning.

	It was strange to be watching this. It was strange to watch two people he'd come to know putting their lives in a small car in the hopes of finding something helpful in another place that wasn't home. Bod was standing near Kate, trying to make sure she had moral support since he knew this would be difficult.
	Kate felt like it was part of her life that was getting packed up in the car, and she thought the others probably felt the same. It would be difficult all around. The fact that Charmaine and Neil had announced they were getting married had been half buried under the rest of the morning's excitement. Tara remembered, though. Satisfied with how her bags were packed, she came over, finally. It was obvious she was as nervous as everyone else, maybe more. She reached out to stroke her baby niece's head. "Let me know how it goes," she told her sister. "I want to hear everything." "Sorry you're missing it," Neil chimed in, "there's nothing more romantic than municipal nuptials." Charmaine sounded about as close to crying as Kate felt. "I'll send you pictures of the new place. I can't believe I'm doing this without you."
	"I don't know how you did anything with me," Tara replied, her voice breaking both with laughter and nerves. She gave both her sister and her niece a little kiss and a hug, then gave a quick hug to Neil as well. And while Max was yelling out reminders of when to pay the water and power bills to Kate, Tara moved to face Bod. Her smile was wry and a little lopsided as she lifted her arms a bit. "Hug for the certifiably crazy mother-in-law?"
	"You're going to make Kate panic if she hears you," Bod quipped, stepping closer to give her a hug. "I wish you all the best in this journey. I think you're very brave and talented and strong. Thank you for welcoming me as you have."
	Tara gave him a firm hug, chuckling softly at his words. "Thank you for being there for Kate," she told him quietly. "I couldn't have asked for a better boy for her." There was the glimmer of tears in her eyes as she stepped back, but she was still smiling.
	"And I couldn't have asked for a better family to take me in with mine so far away," Bod said, smiling. "I'll be there for Kate for as long as she'll have me. And if you need anything, let me know."
	Tara nodded once more at him, then moved to embrace Kate, who clung to her, trying her best not to cry. "Keep an eye on your brother," Tara told her. Her voice sounded strangled as she replied, "I will." When Tara pulled back, she kissed Kate on the forehead, and they both smiled, though it was sad. Marshall wasn't unaffected, either. "When you get to Boston," he said, "don't let them pull out all the good parts." Tara pulled him in, pulling him tight against her chest. It was close, quiet hug. Only once she'd moved back again did she look at both her children, and said, "You guys are my good parts."
	Kate drew in an unsteady breath, and her father called out from the driver's side of the truck, "Hey, we better get going." Tara gave the family one last look, a nervous wave. "Yeah," she said, smiling while so obviously straining to hold herself together, "it's time to bounce around in my head until I land in the banana factory." The laughter that ensued was the most tear-infused it had ever been with this family. As Tara turned more towars the truck, Kate shuddered with a harsh sob, because goddammit, this was making her weepy and she couldn't even pinpoint the exact reason why. This was just... Everything was changing.
	Everything was changing and while Bod hoped it'd be a change for the good for her mum, it really was just completely unknown at this time. Bod curled a hand over Kate's shoulder, letting her know he was there for her right now. He used his other hand to rub her back a bit to soothe but wasn't going to stop her from crying right now.
	Kate turned to bury her face against his shoulder, just for a moment, just for a single sob, then turned to watch again. Her mother got in the car, pulled the belt on, waved at them through the window and blew them a kiss.
	Kate waved and blew kisses back, though she felt like she could barely see with the tears, and everyone else did the same. Then they watched the car drive away along Oak Avenue, until it disappeared around a bend in the street.
	"She'll be all right," Bod murmured, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck. "We'll be all right too."
	Yeah, Kate wasn't going to manage any words in reply to that right now. She just turned into his embrace and clung to him like she'd clung to her mother just a moment ago. Oh yeah, and there was definitely crying.
	"Shhh," Bod murmured, holding her tightly and letting her cry against his shoulder. He stroked her back and rubbed her hair and tried to comfort her even if he knew this would was something that would take time to really get over. But, he had time and he was willing to wait it out with her.
	He was maybe going to have to wait a while. Or at least until Charmaine or someone would come over and say, 'come on guys, let's go inside'. Either way, it would take a while for her to calm down. But at least no one had died this time.

-----

All things, including emotional turmoil, calmed down eventually. By the afternoon, tears had dried, Charmaine and Neil had taken Wheels to the park, and Marshall had gone for a walk. Only Kate and Bod remained.

Standing in her parents' kitchen – her kitchen now? – Kate glanced around, sighed, and wondered when she should start moving her crap over from next door.

[ooc: NFB. Once more, preplayed with the utterly fabulous

nimeni, and taken and tweaked from the very end of USoT S03E12, also known as the series finale, woe. NO MORE CANON. Open for that guy, and calls and texts!]